When the going gets tough, women get online

At times of stress, partners and fridge no longer first port of call for comfort!

Women are twice as likely to share their feelings online at times of stress, than burden their partner, according to new findings. The poll, carried out by the new women’s online community, www.powderroomgraffiti.com, suggests that women are increasingly turning to the blogosphere to relieve stress. 58 per cent of respondents said that at difficult times, such as Christmas, they wrote more online, either by blogging, commenting or taking part in social networks. This compared with only 23 per cent who said they turned to their partners when things got on top of them. 18 per cent said they had even found themselves substituting writing for the more traditional stress relievers such as alcohol and comfort-eating. “Our research would certainly indicate that the blogosphere has a real psychological benefit for some women and appears more effective than the more obvious stress relievers of alcohol or face-to-face exchanges with a close confidant.” said Diane Hayman, editor of Powder Room Graffiti. She added: “Being encouraged to speak honestly is clearly very liberating for women. Since we launched Powder Room Graffiti, whose main aim is to give women a chance to tell it how it is, we’ve seen people share and debate the full gamut of subjects, many of which would be off-limits in a coffee morning setting or on the pages of a glossy magazine.” Mel, who blogs as ‘PigInTheKitchen’ and is a regular contributor to PRG, said: "I get such a sense of release from writing my thoughts down and, the more stressed I get, the more I turn to my laptop. It's helpful that there are other women out there who also share their trials and tribulations and this drives a very strong sense of community. Blogging and writing is very therapeutic - it is my voice, in my space and it gives me back a sense of self where I am not just 'a mum' and 'a wife'." The website is at www.powderroomgraffiti.com. -Ends- Further information: Rebecca Pain 07974 212544 or 01252 725346 or Louise Evans 07891 242476 or 01252 725346. About www.powderroomgraffiti.com PRGraffiti, which launched over the summer, is currently experiencing a rise up the Alexa ranking (from 847,795 to 301,475 since July 2009). Rejecting the glossy tradition of celebrity gossip and beauty tips, the site is already gaining a reputation for enabling more mature women to express, share and debate their views with honesty. Paying its selected contributors and guaranteeing quality writing, the site represents a new breed of online editorial which carves out a unique path between magazine journalism and unstructured user-generated content. About John O. Morisano John O. Morisano has spent the last 20 years helping to build and run entertainment and media companies. From his first job forward, John has always found himself at the heart of a company's operations. A CPA and graduate of Pace University in New York City, Morisano started his career at the Vista Organization, Ltd., a publicly-traded indie film company, and aided in its sale in 1989. He then joined the accounting firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers in its entertainment and media practice. In 1993, he moved to Paris to take over the European operations of Activision, the World’s leading video game publisher. He subsequently moved back to the States and co-founded that company's business development group. John left Activision in 1995 and returned to NYC from LA where he served as interim CEO of UK based Dewynters NA. In 1996, he joined forces with Tim Nye at the SunshineCompanies where they focused on angel investing in start ups and offering management expertise to take companies through the early stages of their growth.. While at Sunshine and through its investments which include the Sunshine Theater, Pickerel Pie Entertainment, Sunshine Direct and SaysMe.TV, John has overseen the production of dozens of hours of television, numerous feature films, hundreds of hours of Internet content and a wide variety of other types of branded intellectual property. PowderRoomGraffiti represents the meeting point of many of the skills he has developed in content, technology and management. About Diane Hayman Diane studied Psychology at Durham University, where she also rowed for the Great Britain U23 squad, and worked as Women's Sports editor of the student newspaper. After University, she went to work for Andersen's Consulting (now Accenture) as a management consultant for 2 years, 6 months of which were spent in Chicago. For the next 9 years, Diane worked in the City for BZW, Barclays Capital, and WestLB, mostly as an interest rate trader, but also in Treasury Sales, and in Marketing. During this period she travelled extensively, including a year in Paris (which is where she first met John Morisano) and a year in New York. Having given up work to have 3 children in quick succession (now aged 11, 10 and 8), Diane wrote a blog -'Drunk Mummy'- which gave her her first insight into the quality and humour of online writing, and she made numerous contacts in the online writing industry. The whole experience inspired Diane to launch PowderRoomGraffiti.

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